As someone privileged to direct a summer camp for teenagers, I have learnt much about their mindset. What brings them closer to Judaism and what distances them. What inspires them and what turns them off. And because we encourage dialogue, our campers express their innermost feelings. With this blog, I would like to share what I learned and maybe even speak for a voice that sometimes isn't heard.

Thursday, May 3, 2012

BAN ARTSCROLL IPAD: The Newest Technological Evil!

Filed under - Exposing hypocrisy via sarcasm and hyperbole.

I’m shocked and surprised that we are allowing a new device called the iPad ArtScroll Shas to be sold to our frum olem. I know Artscroll invested about 5 million dollars into this app, but when it comes to the nishomos of Klal Yisroel money shouldn't be a part of the equation. Every iPad has Wi-Fi, and in the home I understand you can use J-net and Koshernet, but what happens when they take the device outside the house? All one needs to do is connect to any public Wi-Fi and rachmana litzlon the internet will grab our precious neshamos away!

How low have we fallen that we now have to copy the goyim with every shtus they make? We live in a time, where boruch hashem, torah is being learned in thousands of beis medrashim around the world and we have access to hundreds of seforim kidoshim that tzadikim of the past gave their life to preserve. Imagine their shame when they look down at us from shamayim and see this shtus being brought into our holy beis midrashim. Just think how fast our talmidim will be able to switch applications to some other app which will give them access to the Olem Hatumah. Don't we know ein apotropis li’arayis! What will happen when a child sees something he shouldnt and now becomes a teen at risk? What will happen if someone downloads a facebook app and goes off the derech? What will happen if a father comments on twitter and then marries a shiksa? Just think of the repercussions! We are heading toward a shidduch crisis never has never been seen in klal yisroel!

I am told that there are 20 new features that will be available in version 1.0. But has yidishkeit now become a feature? And since when do we have more than one version of the torah? Do we really need to know where every daf yomi shiur is taking place? Do we suddenly need to be able to look up every source in tanach? If the Gemara says something is there, then its there! When did we suddenly stop trusting our Tannaim and Amoraim?! Just imagine what Rava and Abaye would say if they would be here today!

I quote “Page Syncing, Place Tracking, Extra Hand, Page Fusion, Hybrid Page, Floating Translation, Quick Scroll, Integrated Notes, Page Mapping Color Coding, and much more”. Do you know how much time and bitul torah it's going to take yidden to learn all these new features. This is mamish geferlach! We never had them and we did just fine! Why can't they just pull a sefer off the shelf like they did in Europe. Just like tahara and tuma, technology and torah should not be merged.

I warned about ArtScroll when they came out with the first English edition in 1990. I even got my gedolim to sign letters against this new English translation. Nobody listened to me then, and now look what has happened. Do we not realize the dangers of modern technology? Have we not seen the terrible things that it has caused already? When will we wake up and start listening to my gedolim of the past that warned us of this!

Yes, Klal Yisrael is currently facing unprecedented tragedies. While we used to hear a scandalous story once every few years, that is no longer the case. Our homes have been broken in epidemic proportions. This can primarily be attributed to technology. The more advanced and specialized technology becomes, the more pronounced the yeridah is.” The iPhone and BlackBerry have not only destroyed the kedushah of Klal Yisrael, they have destroyed families, and texting has destroyed the Holy Shabbos. And it doesn’t only touch bachurim. There is no age discrimination; the yeitzer ha’ra attacks everyone across the board. We all have an obligation to do something. And so I say, Mi LaShem Eilai, who will join me and engage in this battle?Iunderstand that ArtScroll invested a lot of money into this project. So what? People invested a lot of money into concerts and books and my Gedolim spoke out against it. I’m sure Hashem will repay them a hundredfold if they would heed my call. Where is my Daas Torah when I need them? Someone please wake them up and make them sign a ban on the ArtScroll iPad now before they start promoting it at the Siyum Hashas! Where is the Ichud hakehilos when we need them most?!

Please print my letter on pashkevillim to post in every shul and on every street in meah shearim!

Dovid Teitelbaum,Signed by ALL THE GEDOLIM. (well, not all, but you get the drift)Please sign your anonymous names in the comment box below.

P.S. I ask everyone from Klal Yisroel to turn off their filters for a minute and watch this shmutztube video, promoting the new ArtScroll Digital Library Featuring the Schottenstein Talmud and take action at once.

49 comments:

I understood your opinion on the modern day technology until I read your quote "sarcasm is the body's natural defense against stupidity”. Do you really feel like having the whole art scroll on a I-pad will affect those Jewish bachrim? I think Its a brilliants idea with the way technologies headed. You cant stop everyone from using blackberries, Iphones ETC, so you might as well become a part of the technological society and make something good out of it.

Considering, the Rabbanim tried to ban the original Artscroll for fear that it may hinder a Bachur's ability to learn the old way and it would form a crutch... I am not sure all people will get your sarcasm, some deluded people may even think you are serious!

I misunderstood your opinion on the modern day technology until I read your quote "sarcasm is the body's natural defense against stupidity”. Do you really feel like having the whole art scroll on a I-pad will affect those Jewish bachrim? I think Its a brilliants idea with the way technologies headed. You cant stop everyone from using blackberries, Iphones ETC, so you might as well become a part of the technological society and make something good out of it.

I misunderstood your opinion on the modern day technology until I read your quote "sarcasm is the body's natural defense against stupidity”. Do you really feel like having the whole art scroll on a I-pad will affect those Jewish bachrim? I think Its a brilliants idea with the way technologies headed. You cant stop everyone from using blackberries, Iphones ETC, so you might as well become a part of the technological society and make something good out of it.

Really a perfect clash of backwardness (which we love) and progress. The artscroll ipad app will probably help the "eichus" of those learning daf yomi, and may also lead to more people learning during free time, but would necessarily force them to be exposed to unfiltered internet. This is almost as bad as the day Rebbi chose to put the Mishnah to paper.As an aside, you would make a great askan, to plead your case to someone who didn't understand the value of the new tech, who would gladly ban it and make them cancel this app for the kiddush hashem that always occurs when you force others to lose money/suffer due to your lack of knowledge of the situation and laziness to investigate yourself.

Finally, your true colors are showing thru. You're a letz just like most bloggers out there. If you were a sincere yirei shamayim truly concerned about klal yisroel, you wouldn't resort to such leitzanus

Thats something I thought about. First, I dont think Apple will let Artscroll hard-wire anything. All they can do is make an App. I am sure there are filter apps that can be installed by parents. I know the iphone has password protection. But than again all one needs to do is....

I see a sad pattern here beginning to emerge.An eerrie similarity to the Natan Slifkin debacle.He wrote books which were Leshem Shamayim.Yet when the Gedolim took issue with him, instead of retracting problematic passages, he fought them.In the initial phase he posted only "defense" articles on his website, then he let others post derogatory articles on his website, then he allowed others to post sarcasm on his website, ultimately publishing full-fledged attacks.

I knew your father well, and I appreciate that he knew how to harness technology to support Torah learning, fight ponzi schemers etc. but I never knew him to attack the Gedolim or disagree with them publicly.

I feel your pain that it is not easy to disagree with the Gedolim, but if we stop listening to them, we become a nation like all others, run by laymen.

As much as you might think that they are unable to relate to our youth and today's technology, I beg to differ. You are not in a position where fathers and mothers of broken children come crying to you that their children have been ruined by electronic devices.

And as much as you may want to preach that Love and Happiness will enable them to keep away from this stuff, the Yetzer Hara is somehow wiser than that.

Do you advocate leaving drugs around your children (whom I am sure are being given the 8 EEEEEEEEE's)?

It is a nice concept, but the reality is that everyone needs a Shomer when dealing with the Yetzer Hara and I would not want it on my shoulders that I opposed the Gedolim's call to an Asifa.

I'm sorry, but your comment itself is hypocritical. You say Im allowing derogatory comments about people and then you accuse Natan Slifkin of doing wrong. Why you would say loshon hara about someone else on my blog is beyond me. If you have a problem with him send him an email.Unfortunately we past the point of not listening to "your gedolim" when they past bans that know one listened to. I dont believe the Gedolim are behind this charade and huge chilul hashem to take place. Why some wont speak up is beyond me. You buy into the stories about fathers and mothers of broken children that come crying that their children have been ruined by electronic devices. Well, I have news for you. I know these children and I know these parents and thats not what they are complaining about. Read the blogs and see for yourself. Parents are not concerned with electronic devises, they are concerned about love and happiness which you dismiss as unimportant.You say you feel my pain but you dont. It pains me to see these lies being repeated and the real issues begin swept under the carpet, Im surprised in doesn't pain you.

I'm shocked you didn't mention the obvious chilul shabbos that will result from this! Whether mistaken, or as a rationalization ("at least I'm learning!") there's no excuse to allow this blatant, nay, FLAGRANT, michshol lifnei iver to exist!Klal yisroel crumbles, while devils masquerade as rabbis wearing frocks selling torah an SHMUTZ PADS!!P.S. I only throw rocks at people with shmutz pads!

I'm shocked you didn't mention the obvious chilul shabbos that will result from this! Whether mistaken, or as a rationalization ("at least I'm learning!") there's no excuse to allow this blatant, nay, FLAGRANT, michshol lifnei iver to exist!Klal yisroel crumbles, while devils masquerade as rabbis wearing frocks selling torah an SHMUTZ PADS!!P.S. I only throw rocks at people with shmutz pads!

I share with you a distaste for the sarcasm bordering on laytzanus contained within this post.

However, I must tell you that the comparison to Slifkin is 100% inaccurate. At no time did any of those who banned his books articulate in a coherent fashion exactly which passages they objected to, nor what their specific objections were. There was therefore nothing that Slifkin could do in order to achieve any kind of compromise or resolution.

I agree with you that there is some merit in the internet asifa. However, I disagree with you as regards to the Slifkin campaign, which -- in my opinion -- had no merit whatsoever.

I therefore think that it's best to not make the comparison, given that in the Slifkin case, the criticism leveled against the banning Rabbis was well-deserved and surprisingly restrained.

If by laytzanus you mean that I am making fun of this line of thought than hell ye, That was my point. How do you explain a convention held this year that blamed technology for all the problems of the day and all the other quotes i used above. And then approve of an Ipad Shas.?!

What are you smoking? Children are not ruined by electronic devices, no matter what their parents may like to think. Children whom you dismiss as "broken" merely use technology as an escape from a society that has failed to attract them to the values it mouths insincerely. It is often easier for parents and rabbis to blame technology than to face the sad reality that they have not shown these children the true beauty of Judaism (often because they don't feel it themselves).

"Parents are not concerned with electronic devises, they are concerned about love and happiness which you dismiss as unimportant"

As if there aren't any cases where there was plenty of love and hapiness, yet the electronic devices ruined pure yiddeshe neshomos. Teitelbaum, get a clue, you have no idea whats going on other than a handful of kids that you deal with yourself. Theres a big world out there that you don't know about, most of these parents DONT come to you, dont lie and claim you know them all

"You say Im allowing derogatory comments about people and then you accuse Natan Slifkin of doing wrong"

Again with your stupid distorted logic, HE (ABC) wasnt accusing slifkin of anything, its public knowledge that the gedolim banned his books and slifkin allowed huge mockeries of gedolim to take place, whereas YOU are creating a platform for mockery of gedolim. YOU are accussing Rabbis Salomon, Kanievsky and dozens of other Gedolim of creating a *huge* chilul hashem and you're still in self denial that you refuse to believe they're for the asifa. Get off your high horse and have some humility that you're just a little half cracked peanut brain near these gedolei torah

What are you smoking? Children are not ruined by electronic devices, no matter what their parents may like to think. Children whom you dismiss as "broken" merely use technology as an escape from a society that has failed to attract them to the values it mouths insincerely. It is often easier for parents and rabbis to blame technology than to face the sad reality that they have not shown these children the true beauty of Judaism (often because they don't feel it themselves).

Wow Steve Jobs OB"M RIP Will now know the entire Torah shbaal peh, better than most Roshei Yeshivah. what a Zechus for his neshomah, is the Debut on the yahrtzeit or B4?Shame they don't make another DEATH { AKA asifa RASH"I by Yishmoel quotes a gemorah that Geviyah is by Tzadikim only, the Artscroll adds in asifa, I didn't cross check the Gemarah yet} on Steve's first Yahrtzeit.BTW Dovid be careful or Sdeh Chemed will have no kids this year, all the schools will throw out Sdeh Chemed campers.

Loshon Hara- Are you kidding me? You're threatening him with his camp?? The kind of people that go aren't the type to be against these things, and no school would do that. You just sound so ignorant when you say that. What is with everyone and the stupid comments and threats?? Are you guys proud to call yourself Jewish? I am so disgusted, and i'm glad people don't base Judaism on people like you. If you were the representative for Judaism, I promise no one would want to be Jewish.

This is what i hate about people like you (no offense)all you do is coment on the negative side! same with people at the asifah all they did was talk abou the bad, never the good things you can do on the internet.You dont understand the amount of children and less clever people will be able to use thisyou disgust me

It was *just* over the top enough that I recognized the sarcasm.However please bear in mind "Poe's law":"Without a winking smiley or other blatant display of humor, it is impossible to create a parody of fundamentalism that someone won't mistake for the real thing."